Brotherhood of the Edge

I've got a bad feeling about this

After finally finding a home for the Twi’lek girl, we find ourselves in the middle of a treasure hunt. Although this if for that underground lord who tried to kill us, it was nice thinking that we wouldn’t be involved with the empire for once. Sadly, when we made it to where this artifact is supposedly hidden, I began to hear voices not unlike that from our adventure on Mustafar. I thought for sure we handled that Sith, but now I’m not so sure. Either way, we are definitely in for a rough ride.

Random thoughts and comments on our adventures

Reethan found another group of adventurers by accident thanks to Imperial forces. Shot down by Imperial destroyers along with two other rogue ships approaching the planet, Reethan found an old companion, as well as a possible enemy. In communication with each other, all three ships’ occupants exited their downed crafts to confront each other. I knew immediately, even before seeing her, I had come face to face with a Wookie. As we all approached each other from a triangular position I noticed the Wookie eyeing the Ryyk blade on my belt. Focusing on an obvious threat, I turned toward the Wookie. I had not been this close to such a smell for some time and memories overcame me….I might be wearing two Ryyk blades after this encounter. And then the question…she actually had the gall to ask me where I “stole” the Ryyk blade. Did she not know what she was facing? I let her know quickly Trandoshan’s do not steal and it was “taken” in honor….and she was welcome to try to take it back. To my surprise the Wookie actually backed away, obviously not wanting a confrontation. I have to admit I was confused at her obvious desire to avoid a confrontation with a life-long enemy. Where had this Wookie come from to react this way? I finally ascertained that the Wookie’s name was Vanielle and posed no obvious threat.

Since Vanielle was no threat, I turned my attention to the third ship of our trio. As we got closer I recognized a silhouette I had not seen for quite some time. I could not help but show my joy at seeing such an old friend….I yelled with little question, “Dr. John?” And indeed it was…the one man who helped me escape the Empire, risking his own life. No matter that he was traveling with an obvious Twi’lik bounty hunter and a human I could not recognize, I did not hesitate to hail him and welcome our reunion. He quickly put any reservations I may have had aside to let me know that Nat (the Twi’lik bounty hunter) and J’artan (they say an actual member of royalty on this planet) were no threat to me and that I could trust them….in the end Dr. John’s trust was not so well placed, but I cannot blame him for other’s well-meaning, but overzealous, actions.

After we all agreed to join forces we found ourselves in J’artan’s home land helping him find his mother and gain back his rightful place in this world. Unfortunately my trust in J’artan’s judgment proved almost fatal as he led us into a trap in the city…after I agreed to release my weapons. Without going into great detail, this proved to be disastrous as I was taken prisoner along with the Wookie and rest of the group. In the end I am sure J’artan did not appreciate losing a hand (that I might have been slightly responsible for), but it was not a great adventure for any of us. We barely escaped with our lives and I am saddened to admit that without the help of Vanielle and another large male Wookie named Waka Waka I may not have made it out at all. But then again, if left to the Wookies we would still be busting our asses on rocks until we die. It seems these Wookies of today need a bit of prodding before they realize their ass is about to be cooked. But no matter….they have proved to be loyal companions and I may have to change my mind about my lifelong enemies. We shall see. And we met, and lost, J’artan’s brother. I am not sure there was any blood loss between the two of them. And what happened to Waka Waka in the end I know not.

Note to self: must be more careful about giving up weapons.

Our group also found a Twi’lik named Jac, or did Jac find us. I am still not sure what Jac does for a living, but it seems he has some sort of family tie to what I have gathered. At any rate, without the Twi’lik’s ship we would have been toast. And oh yea, there is a Twi’lik slave with us as well. I have to say we appear to be a rag tag group of characters that should be enemies…how interesting fate can be. At any rate, without a lot of fanfare I will tell you that we ended up with a TIE fighter that I was the pilot of. And Nat is still pissed about the fact that we had two TIE fighters until my poor aim allowed him to be shot down in his….hey, I’m not used to these damn controls….sorry Nat. We made our way from J’artan’s planet to another planet close by. Unfortunately I failed to disarm the transponder on my TIE fighter allowing the Empire to follow us to this planet… IDIOT…and a mistake that will not be made again. And they destroyed the TIE fighter.

Upon arrival at the planet I could sense that the indigenous folk trusted my words from the TIE fighter as to why I am here, but they did not trust my companions on Jac’s ship. It may be my distrust of non-Trandoshan’s or my desire to find a fight before a discussion, but I immediately feared for my companions and tried to warn them to be on alert. My companions, other than Nat, agreed to go with the locals into their city. I shall not follow as I will not give up my weapons again. The locals are very pissed that we brought the Empire with us and I fear they will turn us over to the Empire to save their own ass. And I fear for my companions even more. I fear a fight with the Empire is imminent and I will not let my companions down, especially Dr. John.

Nat has chosen to stay with me and we are separated from the main group. Even though Nat is an accomplished bounty hunter, I forgot how fragile Twi’lik’s can be by Trandoshan standards. I must stay in front, but I am glad he is at my back. At this time we all need the support of each other or we will all die. What they want from us I know not. The two of us have been offered 100,000 credits from some on this planet for our service down in the tunnels…to leave our companions behind to fend for themselves they say. An honest offer… a trap…greed on their part….no matter…I will not go down into their tunnels and abandon Doc at any price. Nat continues to stay with me and not go down into the tunnels.

So now what? Do those on this planet mean us no harm and want to help? Or will they turn us over to the Empire to save their own ass? Must go for now. A fight is in store and it is time to let all know what a Trandoshan can do to save his friends…or die trying. I must go back to my roots…I do not need these modern weapons… I have my own. Heads will roll…and Dr. John shall not die this day, upon my life I swear.

Session 9

Fleeing Erithea after the carnage of the attempted rebellion, our heroes look for a friendly planet on which they can rest, recuperate, and perhaps spend some of their hard-earned credits. They settle on Vantooine, a likely target for its lack of Imperial presence and the fact that it can be reached in less than a day using sublight engines. Most important among their possessions is a TIE fighter which they hoped to sell to pirates or anti-Imperial forces.

When they landed, however, the group found themselves approached by a monk who agreed to feed and heal them in exchange for their weapons. None of the group members was comfortable with this, but Reethan opposed the policy most strongly, and refused to enter the temple if it meant parting with his weapons. Nat reluctantly agreed to remain with him.

Once inside, Jac, J’artan, and John conversed with the monks for a few minutes, then were led into a dining room-like area. Suddenly, force cages activated, and they were taken prisoner. J’artan managed to briefly contact Reethan, but his communicator was quickly jammed.

When Reethan received the communication, he tried to storm the temple, but was stopped by a group of dark-clad men who asked them to help in an “anti-Imperial scheme”. This scheme turned out to be the theft of a powerful artifact used by the Satabs of Vantooine, presumably the shadeshine that J’artan recognized as being both powerful and dangerous. Reethan and Nat agreed to help, but only by causing a diversion while the other thieves attempted to capture the shadeshine.

Meanwhile, the Satabs explained to the captive group that they maintain peace by cooperating with the Empire when necessary, and agreed to a handover of the prisoners. However, they also insisted that they were not cruel, and agreed to treat the injuriesthat the heroes had received, including the amputations. All members of the group, including the baby and the Twi’lek slave girl, were given prosthetic replacements.While the solduiers marched to the trade spot, Reethan and Nat circled the receiving unit of Stormtroopers, and tried to intervene before the handoff could happen.

A tense battle resulted in the separation of the group: Reethan and Nat whittled down a garrison of soldiers from a perch on the street, while Jac nervously tried to fool an Imperial officer into believing that he was a Sith Lord. The Doctor was also fooled, and tried to break free from his restraints, while J’artan managed to palm a grenade from one of the Stormtroopers trying to capture him, exploding three of them.

Now, three standoffs are in progress: Nat and Reethan are increasingly injured as the remaining Stormtroopers fight fire with fire, the Imperial officer is confused and on edge as he tries to understand why a Sith Lord would be cooperating with anti-Imperial elements, and J’artan has the last surviving trooper in his area at knifepoint, hoping that the man doesn’t realize that J’artan doesn’t know how to fight with a knife…

IT'S A TRAP!!

Having finally escaped J’artan’s home world, I was hoping to finally get a little peace from the empire. Sadly, that was never going to happen. Having landed on Dantooine, I thought at first that we were perfectly safe from the empire’s grasp, but the Tie Fighter that we brought with us ended up attracting a Star destroyer to the planet. Now the world is becoming invaded by the empire. To make matters worse, when I woke up from being knocked out, I saw a sith lord in the room. When I saw him, I could only think about the sith we encountered on Mustafar. I can’t believe he survived the encounter. I can’t think strait right now. I am completely blinded by rage. I think I saw a stormtrooper go after the Twi’lek slave girl. Whatever happens, I sure hope she’s alright.

SUCCESS

I can’t believe I did it. Never in my wildest dreams did I think that I would manage to save that poor child we found in the wreckage, but I did, and nothing could make me happier. We had a few close calls during our escape but none of that matters to me. All I know is that I manage to save a life. The only problem is that with the amount of trouble we run into, there’s a great chance that the child will get hurt. I need to find a safe haven for the slave girl and the child. My only fear is that the girl won’t leave me when we find it. We have put her at risk for too long. Maybe that merchant we met knows a safe planet for us to land on.

REVENGE!!!

I can’t believe it. I actually can’t believe it. I found the one responsible for my parents’ death. I had always thought they were gunned down by some stormtroopers. I never would have imagined that a sith would have been behind their demise. Neither did I think that I would actually get the chance to confront the monster. He did a great job at scarring me to death, and I was certain that we were all doomed. Somehow we made it out of there. I’m hoping that I’ve seen the last of him. Nothing would make me happier than knowing that the man responsible for my parents death is no longer among the living.

One-Off Session 2

(This adventure takes place on a refueling stop between Geonosis and Erithea.)

Dropping out of hyperspace near a lava planet, the team noticed a sudden case of critically low fuel. Checking the maps and logs of the planet, they decided to put into a lightly-populated mining zone in order to barter for more fuel and resupply.

Hoping to find a rough-and-tumble tavern, they were disappointed when they discovered an empty docking yard choked with soot and toxic fumes. Holding their breath as best they could, they hurried into the installation, looking for shelter and some sign of habitation.

Unfortunately, the mining camp was empty and dark. In fact, it seemed seriously disused and dusty, as if no one had been there in months. They discussed flying on, but Nat noticed some tracks and movement, so they decided to hunt for a central command station to secure the fuel.

The voices began not long after. Voices in their heads – visions of future and potential events. The only thing that these hallucinations had in common was that they preyed on the deeply-held fears of the heroes.

What happened next is unclear. It’s different, depending on who tells the story. First, items started disappearing – literally melting away – once shadow fell upon them. Next, the doctor and the Twi’lek girl vanished into the warrens after visions drove the doctor to madness.

Left alone, Nat and J’artan tried to locate a power station to reactivate the lights and doors. They found a map, and this led them to a terminal that showed a slightly different map, with a more centralized power station. Meanwhile, the voices and visions grew worse and more bloody, and when J’artan turned around, he was alone.

Nat was also alone, and the Doctor was quickly separated from the Twi’lek girl. Soon, all the heroes began to see images of a strange, grey-skinned man wielding a deadly lightsaber. These apparitions proved to be mere illusions, and the party reunited after a short scuffle led to Nat losing his weapon in a forsaken hallway.

Needing to escape, they decided to make their way to the substation to open exterior doors. There, they found the source of the illusions – the Sith manipulator, who had been using his power to try to break the heroes. He offered them a chance to serve him, which the heroes politely declined by way of a hail of blaster fire.

Several heroic and extremely unlikely actions later, the Sith lay vanquished on the power station’s catwalk, his lightsaber vanished into the darkness below. The heroes flipped on the power only to have the generator overload, blowing up catwalks and causing the Sith to disappear, seemingly through dark Force powers. They fled the base to find the Twi’lek girl safely refueling the ship from an automated station they hadn’t noticed on the way in. They climbed in the ship and flew – toward Erithea, and what they hoped would be an easier port of call.

Freedom

After having taken part in what appears to be a rebel uprising, we are finally free of enslavement. My deepest regret is the great amount of failure I had in trying to help the slaves. I just couldn’t save them. I would blame the conditions, but I just can’t help but feel like I could have done more. Hopefully when I get my supplies back I can start healing people. Hopefully I can heal everyone in the group.

Session 7

The party began split up, enslaved and downtrodden by the Empire. The humans and Twi’lek were put to work on manual labor, digging toward something. The larger heroes were put to work clearing an infestation of creatures out from inside mine shafts. And J’artan was placed under the Moff’s personal control, used as a figurehead for her schemes.

A week passed: the doctor began to treat the injured in the slave camps, while Nat attempted a abortive escape. Reethan and Vanielle battled a Gundark and met a second Wookie, Wakka’Wakka, who was impressed with their valor and chose to assist them in an escape attempt. J’artan took to ‘drinking,’ while actually hoarding high-proof alcohol in his quarters.

Things came quickly to a head: Reethan and the Wookies escaped the mines, and Nat and John Smith moved to help them, right on the heels of a major assault by revolutionary forces hiding outside Imperial reach. While the assault commenced, the mad Moff attempted to break J’artan by demanding that he kill slaves with a broadsword.

While the other heroes moved into position, J’artan drunkenly angered the Moff until she brought out a flamethrower, threatening to burn the slaves in front of everyone. J’artan claimed he was going to slay the captives, accidentally stabbed one, and then turned around and flamethrowered the Moff in the face. This was not enough to kill her, however, and J’artan was subdued for torture and death.

Meanwhile, the rest of the heroes rendezvoused with Tristac Vemilla, J’artan’s brother, who insisted on seizing the throne room himself. They blasted their way in with him, only to find that he intended on killing his brother for perceived crimes against the planet. A well-argued plea convinced Tristac not to shoot J’artan, but the Moff also made an offer: she’d step down for him if he retained Imperial control. He considered the offer – and then battle began.

A short but bloody battle ended with the deaths of the Moff and her henchmen, though Tristac was also grievously wounded. While trying to free J’artan, his torture-trap was triggered and his hand was severed, leaving him injured in a similar manner to the slave girl.

The curtain fell on a bloody, Hamlet-esque throne room, with the heroes scrambling to decide how to proceed while life ebbed from the fallen revolutionary leader Tristac…

Trapped

We are now trapped on J’artan’s home world and forced into slave labor. I was hoping to leave our trouble behind on Geonosis, but it doesn’t look like that is going to happen now. Everywhere I look I see people in pain and it is driving me insane. I hope I can persuade these monsters to let me aid some of these people here. I swore to help those in need, and these people need me now. Also, I am done with the empire. I don’t care what goes on after we get done with this, but I refuse to help these monsters ever again. For now, I just need a way to end these people’s suffering and get of this rock. I sure hope that slave girl is okay.